


Follow My Lead

by Saringold



Category: Fire Emblem: Fuukasetsugetsu | Fire Emblem: Three Houses
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Ballroom Dancing, Dancing, Friends to Lovers, Love all these dance tags, M/M, Nonbinary Linhardt von Hevring, Prom, Slow Dancing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-11-27
Updated: 2020-11-27
Packaged: 2021-03-09 23:47:21
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,505
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27744709
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Saringold/pseuds/Saringold
Summary: Caspar's crushing on Linhardt, but he's sure Linhardt doesn't feel the same. Besides, he has more pressing issues--like getting ready for prom. However, he might just find that for all of his worries, prom has a way of bringing people together in ways they had only ever hoped for.(Written for the Casphardt Minibang 2020!)
Relationships: Caspar von Bergliez & Ashe Duran | Ashe Ubert, Caspar von Bergliez & Linhardt von Hevring, Caspar von Bergliez/Linhardt von Hevring, Dorothea Arnault & Caspar von Bergliez
Comments: 3
Kudos: 19
Collections: Casphardt Minibang 2020





	Follow My Lead

**Author's Note:**

> Here is my second piece for the Casphardt Minibang!! My artists for this one were [cecibeanz](https://twitter.com/cecibeanz) and [hardkourparcore;](https://twitter.com/hardkourparcore) thank you both for your wonderful art! Please enjoy this and all of the other fantastic pieces posted for the Casphardt Mini Bang!

The afternoon sun shone its long orange rays into a small bedroom, bathing the baby blue walls and closed bedroom door in light. A polished oak desk with a dark blue desk lamp and a shelf for books sat in one corner, with a worn office chair pushed underneath. Atop the desk was a sleek laptop covered in various gaming stickers, textbooks, and an explosion of papers of all sorts, some even on the seat of the chair. A pitch black bedspread with red and yellow flames printed along the bottom topped a large, comfortable bed, upon which sat a growing pile of discarded shirts and pants that was starting to overtake most of the available sitting space. These were coming from the direction of blue-haired dynamo and fashion disaster Caspar von Bergliez, who gave a loud groan of annoyance as he pulled yet another pair of jeans out of his closet, this pair having a gaping hole in the left knee, and tossed them behind him without bothering to look back. “No, no, no! Argh, I don’t have _anything_ to wear to prom, Ashe!”

Ashe Ubert, supposed men’s fashion extraordinaire, sat at the edge of the bed, balancing his elbow on his knee and resting his chin in the palm of his hand. He deftly dodged the flying pants, letting them land with a _thump_ atop the mighty Mount Garment. Ashe frowned at Caspar’s outburst, starting to look a little worried. “Caspar, prom is 3 days away. Do you really not have one nice pair of black formal pants? You could even get away with khakis!” 

Caspar sighed, bringing his hands to his face and dragging them downward in dramatic defeat. “No, Ashe, I do _not_ have any nice pants. I’ve never needed them! I mean, ok, I had some two weeks ago for the White Heron Cup competition, but--”

Ashe cut him off with a snort, his shoulders beginning to shake as he recalled the events of that evening. “Oh yes, when you spontaneously decided that you were going to ‘jazz up’ your routine and tried to do a split, only managing to split your pants?” From the look on Caspar’s face, he’d hit the nail on the head. Ashe sighed, calming himself down so that Caspar wouldn’t be too embarrassed to continue. “In all seriousness, though, I bet Linhardt won’t care that much about what you wear--”

Caspar whirled around so fast Ashe thought he could see the bluenette’s afterimage. A red blush was starting to form across the bridge of his nose, rapidly starting to spread across his whole face. “Wha---Lin?”

Ashe stared at him, brow furrowed in confusion as his piercing green eyes looked at Caspar as though he had said something even more utterly nonsensical than usual. “Yeah. I assumed you two were going together.”

“N-no! No way! I mean, yeah, I’d _like_ to, but…” he trailed off. 

Ashe rolled his eyes, seeing this was going the exact same place this topic had gone many times before. “Caspar. Did you even _ask_ them to go to prom with you?”

Caspar gave an embarrassed chuckle, scratching the back of his head with one hand and placing the other on his hip. “Haha, about that… uh… no.”

Ashe sighed, a tad disappointed. “Why not?” 

Caspar’s blush seemed to explode at the words, his entire face turning a fetching shade of red. It made the sky blue of his eyes stand out all the more, making Caspar look rather… colorful. “ _Because,_ Ashe! I really, really like Lin, but I don’t know if they like me _like that,_ you know? And what if I ask, and they refuse? What would that do to us? To our friendship? I just… I can’t lose them.”

Ashe huffed in frustration, words of advice and admonishment both threatening to spill out. _This isn’t how you acted when I asked you for help with my own personal love troubles,_ Ashe thought. _But then again, it_ IS _different when it’s you who’s in a situation versus when it’s somebody else._

Taking a deep breath and refocusing on the present moment, Ashe looked up to see that Caspar was back to rifling through his closet in his desperate search for pants, his blush having subsided into a more thoughtful, contemplative expression. It wasn’t a look Ashe was used to seeing on Caspar, and between that and his friend’s obvious nervousness over where he stood with Linhardt, Ashe felt like this was when Caspar could really use some encouragement. It wasn’t his place to try to play matchmaker, but perhaps he could at least offer something. “You know Caspar, I--”

“Hey Ashe,” his best friend interrupted, in a voice quieter than what Ashe had ever thought he’d hear from Caspar, “do you think… that Lin will show up?”

Ashe blinked, then gave a thoughtful hum. “Well, if you didn’t ask them to prom, did you at least tell them that you were going?”

Caspar seemed to hesitate slightly, but nodded. “Yeah. I said I would go, and that I hoped to see ‘em there.”

“And what did they say?”

Caspar chewed his lip slightly, thinking. “They said… that even though it sounded like a hassle, if that was the case, they wouldn’t miss it. But, that doesn’t mean they like me romantically! It could just mean--”

Ashe raised his eyebrows in a “seriously?” gesture, palms up as he looked askance at Caspar. “Caspar, we’re talking about Linhardt, here. They’re the laziest and most casual honor roll student we know. They would never go through all the trouble of preparing for and attending an event as stuffy and formal as prom if they didn’t have a very good reason, and I have a hunch that _you_ are that reason.”

Caspar’s brow furrowed as he processed this, then his lips slowly spread into a warm, pleased smile, a look Ashe was almost relieved to see at this point. “Well, if you really think so…”

“I really do,” Ashe replied, an answering grin stretching over his own face. “You’ll be fine. Now, you just need some pants,” he laughed, gesturing to the still-looming mountain of clothing.

“AH! Right!” Caspar groaned, running a hand through his hair in frustration as his other one came to rest on his hip. “What should I do?”

At that very moment, a knock on the door resounded throughout the room. “Caspar! Ashe!” Caspar’s Aunt Fleche called, her sweet voice interrupting her nephew’s panic. “I have snacks!”

“Snacks!” Caspar excitedly echoed, a wide grin on his face. “Yeah! That’ll help!” 

Ashe shook his head as Caspar abandoned all worry about the pants and rushed to the door, throwing it open to admit his Aunt Fleche, who gingerly gripped a large tray holding a plate of warm, delicious sweet buns fresh out of the oven, along with a pitcher of lemonade, some glasses, and napkins. “Randolph baked these for you,” she explained. “From the sound of it, you could use a break… or some assistance.”

Ashe thanked her profusely, taking a bun and popping it in his mouth. It was soft and doughy and succulently sweet, the slight sprinkling of powdered sugar on top making for a perfect treat. Caspar had already managed to eat two in the span of mere moments, scarfing them down eagerly. “Thanks, Aunt Fleche!” Caspar exclaimed, a wide grin on his face. He rested his hands behind his head as his expression settled on something more considering. “But yeah, I can’t find any pants to wear to prom. At all.”

Fleche hummed in thought and moved to set the tray down, but upon seeing no place to put it, stared awkwardly at the bed until Ashe cleared some space for her. She placed the tray on the bedspread and tapped her index finger against her chin. “Hm. Perhaps you could talk to Randolph. There should be a few menswear stores around here that would have what you need.”

The mere mention of clothes shopping caused Caspar to grimace and flinch back, staring at his aunt as though she’d grown a second head. “Aww, but I hate clothes shopping! It’s such a pain, and it takes forever, and--”

“And you’re almost out of time,” Ashe interjected firmly. Caspar went quiet at that, and after a moment, he sighed.

“...Yeah, alright,” he conceded, throwing his hands up in the air and shaking his head. “If I’ve gotta, I’ve gotta. I don’t usually care about stuff like this, but this time, I gotta look my best! It’s prom, after all!” he grinned, clenching his fish triumphantly in front of him as if to strengthen his resolve.

Ashe and Fleche nodded, twin smiles on their faces. _Well well,_ Ashe thought, a flash of pride running through him as he saw Caspar starting to hype himself up for shopping, trying to steel himself for the arduous task ahead. _It seems like Linhardt’s not the only one who’s putting in the effort._

Once Caspar’s wardrobe woes had been solved, the days seemed to flit by; all around him, silver and gold decorations with the emblem of the school were being hung, and members of the faculty and staff had started giving out flyers and reminders on “proper prom etiquette.” The entire student body was abuzz with excitement, the upcoming ball seemingly the only topic anyone had time to talk about, and before Caspar knew it, it was already prom night. Uncle Randolph, seeing him all dressed up, had laughed delightedly, barely resisting the urge to tousle his hair and instead giving him a hearty pat on the shoulder. “You look great, Caspar! Be sure to get a picture!” Aunt Fleche had simply nodded in agreement, but Caspar could tell from her quiet smile and warm gaze that she also approved. Soon enough, it was time to leave, and after a good 10 minutes of driving, Caspar clambered out of his uncle’s gray Prius, waving goodbye as Randolph drove off. He had to admit that while a formal outfit like this was rarely his first pick when it came to clothes, he felt pretty sharp in his polished black dress shoes, wrinkle-free white button-down dress shirt with a dark green silk bow tie and a satin green vest over top, pressed black dress pants, and his hair carefully slicked up into its usual slightly-spiky style and topped off with a touch of mousse. His phone was in his pocket, thankfully fully charged, with a text from Ashe saying he was on his way. Caspar was _ready. ___

It was a warm, clear evening, the Lone Moon bringing forth a smattering of spring rains and rising temperatures, but Garreg Mach High School couldn’t have gotten more perfect weather if it had tried. There wasn’t a cloud to be seen, allowing the waxing half-moon to shine down upon the earth alongside the many stars scattered across the sky. Caspar took a deep breath, and brought up his hands to the back of his neck, letting himself relax as he wound his way toward the outside doors leading into the gym. 

He heard the music long before he set his gaze on the gym, the steady thump of the baseline almost like a heartbeat to signal that there was life to the party and the dance was in full swing. At the door, Vice Principal Seteth checked tickets, and once he had gotten a good look at Caspar’s, fixed the bluenette with a steely-eyed stare. “Right. There will be no grinding, no drug use, no alcohol, no swordplay…” Caspar tuned him out in favor of thinking about why swordplay would be banned. It seemed like a no-brainer, but then again, Felix, who had dreams of becoming an olympic fencer one day, carried his swords with him at all times and had been known to persuade people to have practice duels with him, usually during class time. Caspar had tried to go against him once; it had ended up forging a bond of mutual respect and friendship between them, as well as a mutual trip to both the infirmary and the principal’s office. “Are you listening to me?” Seteth cut in angrily, and Caspar blinked, his thought process screeching to a halt as he suddenly remembered where he was and who he was talking to. 

“No swordplay!” Caspar blurted out, hoping that was sufficient to avert the vice principal’s anger. With a sigh, the teal-haired administrator closed his eyes, bringing up his thumb and middle finger to pinch at the bridge of his nose. 

“That’ll do. Go inside.” As Caspar passed through the metal doors, he could hear Seteth starting his same spiel on the people behind him, and Caspar groaned. Now there was a father figure if he’d ever seen one; how Flayn put up with her overprotective big brother, he would never know. 

The dance floor was already packed with students as he walked in, and tables (which he was pretty sure had just been carted in from the cafeteria) were set up all along the sides where the bleachers would usually be, covered in crisp white tablecloths with a vase holding a single flower placed in the middle of each. All around him, glittering gold and silver garlands hung from the gym’s rafters, and banners reading “Garreg Mach High School” were carefully placed to cover the scoreboard and the like to give the space more sophistication. Large windows installed on the upper walls of the gym looked down on the dancers flitting about on the vinyl flooring, while the room itself was bathed in the yellow glow of the gym’s many overhead lights. Overall, it was clear that some real effort had gone into the decorating, and Caspar’s sea-blue eyes lit up with glee as he registered the currently-empty food tables, with a small white placard on top reading “Pizza to come.” 

Several familiar faces were milling about, either dancing to the music or talking at one of the tables. Raphael and Ignatz were standing over by a wall, the beefy blonde’s tie already undone and his sleeves rolled up, and Caspar could hear him loud and clear, even from over where he was. “I hear they’re gonna have pizza, Ignatz! I could go for some of that.” 

Ignatz, who was wearing a dark blue suit and gold tie, looked at him with a mixed expression of fondness and shock. “Raphael, we ate before we got here!” 

“So? I’m gonna need all that energy for dancin’!” 

Caspar chuckled, taking a cue from Raphael and rolling up his own sleeves, and looked to see who else was around. Edelgard was deep in conversation with Lysithea at a table near the back, the ever-serious expressions they always wore not shifting in the slightest even while at a party like this. Not too far away were Hubert and Ferdinand, the former wearing a three piece suit and tie that gave the impression he’d just come from a funeral, and Ferdinand wearing a white tuxedo and bow tie combo that was almost too bright to look at. They were intensely staring each other down, speaking more with their eyes and body language than their words, and Caspar sighed, not terribly interested in getting in the middle of their mess. He had tried exactly once to understand their relationship, and that was more than enough. 

Caspar recognized some of the chaperones walking around as well; Hanneman, Linhardt’s favorite science teacher, was here, as well as Manuela, the school nurse. The two of them were bickering as usual, old friends despite (or because of) the fact that they always had something new to argue about. In the corner stood Catherine, the head of school security, and Shamir, her partner (in both the professional and personal sense). Caspar waved as their eyes met, and Catherine gave him a wave in return while Shamir offered a curt nod. Yep, if anyone could stop an illicit swordfight, it would be those two. 

There was a sudden tap on his shoulder, and he flinched, whirling around in shock to see who was trying to get his attention. To his surprise, it was Dorothea who wanted to talk, the soon-to-be starlet giving him a wink as he finally acknowledged her. Dorothea was wearing a floor-length red dress and had her hair up in a bun. “Finally, Caspie!” she sighed, although her sly smile showed she wasn’t too upset with him. “I’ve been trying to get your attention for a while now!” She looked around. “Where’s Linhardt?” 

Caspar brought a hand up to scratch at the back of his head. “Uh… I dunno. We didn’t come together, so…” 

Dorothea gave him a gentle glare. “Caspar,” she admonished, and Caspar gulped reflexively. Dorothea never called people by their actual names unless she didn’t like them, or they had disappointed her. From the sound of it, this time it was the latter. “You and Linhardt have been dancing around... _this,_ ” she hissed, shaking her hand at him for emphasis, “for _months_ now. I know you’ve been best friends since childhood, but you two were made for each other.” 

“Aww, I dunno, Dorothea,” Caspar replied hesitantly, a hand coming to rest on his hip as his other waved to Ashe, who had just walked in wearing a fitted pinstripe suit and violet tie. Caspar had to admit that the look worked for him. 

“Caspar!” Dorothea snarled, snapping her fingers at him. “Focus!” Caspar turned back to look at her, embarrassed. 

“Right, sorry. So, uh, look, I’ve known Lin for a long time. Like, a really long time. And… there’s just no way that they like me as anything more than a friend. Of all people, I think I would know!” 

Dorothea sighed and shook her head, a few loose locks of her auburn hair swaying with the motion. “Caspar, there’s a saying about being so close to something you can’t see it for what it is. Are you _sure_ that Lin doesn’t like you romantically, or are you so convinced they don’t that even if they did, you would never guess?” 

Caspar reeled back like he’d been slapped, and looked away, suddenly unable to meet her gaze. “N-no way! Linhardt’s always been…” He trailed off, eyes fixated on the entrance to the gym. Dorothea turned to see what he was staring at, and smiled smugly. Walking through the metal doors was Linhardt, but it was a Linhardt that Caspar had never seen before, one that he swore in that moment to commit to memory forever. 

Linhardt was wearing a pale blue, floor length dress that was slightly longer in the back than in the front, with an elegant dark blue design embroidered near the middle that ran from the middle of the top down to the beginning of the skirt. The dress had small cap sleeves that rested on their upper arms and thin straps on their shoulders to hold it up. On their left wrist was a corsage of beautiful blue forget-me-nots, and the dress also appeared to have pockets, as Linhardt slipped their phone idly into one of them. They had kept their usual hairstyle for this occasion, but Caspar could see that instead of the white hairband he was so used to seeing, they had opted to tie their hair back in a blue ribbon that matched the color of their dress. The entire look was completed by the comfy red Converse sneakers they wore, utterly clashing with the rest of the ensemble. Caspar had to laugh; that part, at least, suited Lin to a T. They always did prefer to be comfortable even if the occasion called for formality, much to Mr. and Mrs. Hevring’s eternal embarrassment. 

Caspar was about to walk over and talk to them--they were looking around, possibly looking for someone--when the song ended and Dorothea grabbed his arm. “Hold on, Caspie! We never got to finish our conversation!” She gave him a wink and tilted her head back, motioning toward the dance floor. “Come dance with me, and then you can go hang out with Lin all you want.” Caspar hesitated, looking back only to see that Leonie had already walked up to his green-haired bestie and was chatting away. 

“Well, alright…” he replied. He supposed one dance wouldn’t hurt. 

The song changed to a slow-tempoed waltz, and Caspar gulped; he’d had some practice with dancing to this particular style and music while preparing for the White Heron Cup, but he’d never liked the slower-paced steps. It felt like he had to fight with himself to keep to the beat, at least if he was doing it alone, but then again, for the competition itself, he’d gotten noticeably better at it, likely thanks to-- 

Caspar pulled himself back to reality as Dorothea placed a hand on his back and led him to the dance floor. He may have been way shorter than her, but he could still reach her waist comfortably, and he made sure to put his arm high so that he didn’t accidentally brush her butt or something. He didn’t want her to think he was trying to make a move on her, after all. 

Dorothea simply smiled warmly at the gesture, giving a little chuckle. “Oh, Caspie. You’re so thoughtful.” She moved her hand to his shoulder as they clasped their free hands together and extended them to the side, beginning to dance. 1, 2, 3… 1, 2, 3… Caspar took a deep breath, nerves starting to make him sweat. He was doing a decent job of leading, managing not to step on Dorothea’s toes just yet, and all of his concentration was focused on the dance, up until Dorothea promptly shattered it. “You know, Caspie, Lin’s staring at you.” 

“H-Huh!?” he blurted, his eyes going wide in shock, and he would have missed the next step were it not for Dorothea suddenly taking the lead, pulling him into her pace so that he just had to follow her instead. “What do you mean, they’re staring at me?” 

She chuckled, giving him a wink. “I meant what I said. They haven’t taken their eyes off us since we started dancing.” 

Caspar shook his head, giving Dorothea a twirl. “No way. Lin’s not into me like that, and no offense, but they’re definitely not into _you_ like that, so they’re probably looking at someone… else…” 

Once again, Linhardt took Caspar’s breath away, for as Dorothea had been dancing, she’d been leading them closer and closer to where Linhardt was standing, and at Caspar’s denial, turned him so that he could catch a glimpse of them. Their eyes met, the sea meeting the sky, and Caspar felt a shiver run down his spine. They were staring at him, wide-eyed, with emotions he couldn’t describe flashing through them. Caspar couldn’t look away if he’d tried. 

Suddenly, however, Linhardt tore their gaze away, slowly retreating through the crowd. From his position, Caspar could see them making a beeline for the exit, pushing open the metal doors and running outside. He stopped dancing, letting go of Dorothea, who stumbled backwards with a gasp. “Caspar! Wha--” 

“Sorry, Thea! I gotta go!” he answered apologetically, dashing off the dance floor in hot pursuit of Linhardt. He began muscling his way through the crowd, yelling apologies to everyone he bumped into but not bothering to stop. Dorothea simply shook her head and smiled, understanding just what it was that Caspar was after and hoping that they would both get what they were looking for. 

  


“Lin! LINHARDT!” Caspar yelled into the moonlit night, cupping his hands to his mouth as he called for his best friend. He looked around desperately, trying to find any trace of them, and began to run across the grounds until he passed the school clocktower, nicknamed the Goddess Tower. His eye caught a flash of bright red in the moonlight, and as he walked closer to the structure, he saw Linhardt on their side, laying on one of the stone benches, with their eyes closed and brow furrowed in what looked like a pained expression on their face. “Linhardt! Are you alright!?” Caspar exclaimed, dropping to his knees, worried that they had been injured somehow. 

At the sound of his voice, Linhardt’s eyes flew open, and they hurriedly sat up, looking at him as though they couldn’t believe he was there in front of them. “Caspar? What are you doing here?” 

“What do you think? My best friend saw me and Thea dancing and suddenly ran off! I had to come see if you were ok!” 

At the mention of Dorothea, Lin’s previously surprised look smoothed into a more neutral one, a mask that they tended to use whenever they were upset but didn’t want to make a fuss. Caspar hated that look. “Don’t worry about me, Caspar. You should be with your date.” 

“D-d- _date!?_ ” Caspar spluttered, flinching back as a look of utter surprise overtook his face. “What are you talking about!? I didn’t come here with Dorothea!” 

__

Now Linhardt just looked lost. “You… didn’t?” 

__

“No! I didn’t come with anybody! And honestly, I _had_ thought about asking you, but…” Caspar trailed off, embarrassed, and he could feel a blush bloom on the bridge of his nose, reaching across to his cheeks. 

__

Linhardt continued to stare at him, and he could practically see the sea of questions running through their mind, until finally, one forced its way to the forefront: “So… why didn’t you?” 

__

Caspar stilled. That… really was the question, wasn’t it. He gulped, not looking away from Linhardt as sweat beaded on his brow. “I thought… you wouldn’t want to come with me,” he replied sheepishly, a hand coming up to brush against the back of his head as the other came to rest on his hip. “I mean, I know I told you I was going, but I didn’t think you would want to go _with_ me, I guess.” 

__

Linhardt paused for a moment, parsing his words, before they returned his gaze with a distinctly softer one than before. “Caspar, I would go anywhere you asked me to. I mean that. Although if anything, I seem to be the one who led you to me, this time.” They stood up, then turned around to face the wall of the Goddess Tower. “Do you know the legend of this place, Caspar?” Linhardt asked, placing a hand on the faded red brick. 

__

“Uh… no, I don’t think so,” Caspar replied, dumbfounded at the sudden topic change. 

__

“They say that if two people wish for something together here at the Goddess Tower during prom night, then the Goddess of the Tower will grant their wish. Romantic, isn’t it?” 

__

Caspar blinked at them, surprised. “Whoa! I never knew that! That’s super cool, though!” 

__

Linhardt turned back toward him and chuckled in response, Caspar’s enthusiasm simply infectious. “Isn’t it? Well, in light of such a legend, perhaps this is the best place I could have chosen, in the end.” 

__

Caspar calmed down somewhat, looking at them carefully. “Lin… what are you trying to say?” 

__

The smile slipped off of Linhardt’s face, and they looked away momentarily, as if gathering their courage, before turning to face Caspar. “Caspar, I… I care about you so much. You make me happy. You make me feel brave. You make my heart warm, and my loneliness vanish. I know that you bring out the best in me, and when I saw you up there with Dorothea, I thought my heart was breaking so badly that I ran. For that, I’m sorry. But I hope… that maybe… you can understand how I feel. And if you don’t--” 

__

They were cut off by Caspar grabbing their hand in his own and bringing it to his lips, gently pressing a kiss to the back. “Linhardt. I _do_ understand. So well. And I dunno if it’s love or whatever, but I really, really, _really_ like you, in the ‘heart’s racing, palms sweating’ kind of way, and… um… you’re still my best friend, but you’re also the person I wanna stick with… well, forever. So. Um. Yeah, I think I get it,” Caspar finished, his face flushed a deep crimson. However, he didn’t need to worry; Linhardt’s was colored similarly, and they were making no move to pull their hand away from Caspar’s. He cleared his throat, looking at them intently, and held out his other hand. “So then… Lin, may I have this dance?” 

__

Linhardt’s bashful expression eased into a smile, and they nodded, placing their free hand in his. “The honor would be mine, Caspar.” They let go of each other for a moment, with Lin pulling their phone out of their pocket and quickly searching up a song. While they did so, Caspar checked his own phone, and grimaced as he saw and responded to the 15 unread texts from Dorothea, plus 2 from Fleche and another from Randolph. That done, Caspar slipped his phone back in his pocket and looked back at Linhardt, and his jaw dropped as he stared, wide-eyed, at his… well, his partner, now, in more ways than one. 

__

In the 10 minutes that Caspar had spent answering texts, Lin had put their hair up in a bun much like Dorothea’s, with two long locks hanging loose, and around their neck sat a dark blue lace collar that matched the design on the dress. A crimson blush spread across their face at his scrutiny, and they gave a nervous little laugh, clutching their phone tightly in one hand. “I had meant to put on the finishing touches of my outfit once I had gotten to the gym, but I hadn’t had time to do so before everything happened. How does it look?” 

__

“ _Beautiful,_ ” he murmured, and his joyfriend gave him a loving, pleased smile that shot straight to his heart. 

__

“Thank you,” they replied, a gorgeous blush still coloring their cheeks, and they brought up their phone again, tapping away at it as music began to play. Once he heard the opening bars of the song Lin had selected, Caspar couldn’t help but let out a laugh. “Ooooh, this is a good one,” he grinned. “I haven’t heard this since practicing for the White Heron Cup.” 

__

“I thought it would be appropriate,” Lin replied with a smile as they locked the phone and dropped it back in their pocket, “considering how often you and I danced to this during your emergency dance lessons.” 

__

The song began, and Caspar wrapped his arm around Linhardt, feeling it settle just right on the small of their back as Lin placed their hand on his shoulder, and held out their still joined hands, ready to dance. Caspar effortlessly took the lead, eyes on his beautiful partner, as Lin followed him smoothly, perfectly able to keep up. Caspar waltzed them all along the base of the Goddess Tower, claiming it all to themselves as their personal dance floor, the two keeping perfect time and easy balance. Caspar leading Linhardt, Linhardt faithfully following, both of them holding each other close under the half-moon as they immersed themselves in the dance. 

__

Finally, near the end, Caspar paused, and met Linhardt’s eyes, both of them knowing what would come next. Caspar moved their joined hands, and began to spin Linhardt, the taller bending so they could twirl under Caspar’s arm, and then spun back. It was time for the finisher. Caspar held Lin close, then pushed them out and away from him, before Lin spun once, twice, ending up in his arms as he pulled them into a dip just as the last few notes of the song petered out into the evening. 

__

They stared at each other, eyes locked with one another’s, until they both burst into overjoyed giggles, Caspar helping his partner up. “Oh man, if only I could have done that well in the White Heron Cup,” Caspar laughed, a hand resting on his hip as another came up to rest on his temple. 

__

Linhardt smirked, crossing their arms and bringing up a hand to their chin. “You would have, if you hadn’t insisted on improvising with that silly split that tore your pants--” 

__

“Ok, ok!” Caspar interjected, feeling like he was one word away from blushing furiously once again. “I get it! Still…” He looked at Lin fondly, his smile reaching up to his eyes, and they returned his gaze, all of the warmth and care and trust between them far more tangible than ever before. “Thanks, Linny. Do you think… that maybe we should make a wish?” 

__

“...I would like that.” 

__

They took each other’s hands once again, and no words needed to be said, the two of them closing their eyes and concentrating as hard as they could. No matter what would happen now or in the future, there was one thing that they both knew they wanted, more than anything else. 

__

_I wish to make Linhardt/Caspar happy for the rest of our lives._

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**Author's Note:**

> Take a look at the original piece at cecibeanz's twitter [here](https://twitter.com/cecibeanz/status/1332419867916578817?s=20)  
> and hardkourparcore's [here!](https://twitter.com/hardkourparcore/status/1332418857210961920?s=20)  
> You can also check out my writing twitter [here!](https://twitter.com/Saringold_)


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